The Craziest Ways To Pay Your Tuition

Most students who have a hard time paying for college turn to traditional methods, like taking out loans, applying for scholarships and asking relatives to help defray the cost.

But some have opted for more ... creative means of funding their education.

Below, check out eight of the craziest ways students (and their parents) have paid for college tuition.

Do you have a story for us? Share it in the comments section!

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Experts often tell students struggling with their finances to pay in cash, rather than credit, in order to keep track of their expenses and make sure they don't overspend. But Nic Ramos may have taken this advice a bit too literally when he paid a semester's worth of tuition -- $14,300 -- in $1 bills. Talk about making a statement.

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Experts often tell students struggling with their finances to pay in cash, rather than credit, in order to keep track of their expenses and make sure they don't overspend. But Nic Ramos may have taken this advice a bit too literally when he paid a semester's worth of tuition -- $14,300 -- in $1 bills. Talk about making a statement.

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Comments

[Shawnee Santos]

04:56 AM on 03/01/2011

I think starting a business is a great way to pay off college. Sure it is time consuming, but at least your paying off your tuition. America is really spoiled. They demand the simplest things like a hiring a person to clean there dorms and getting a hangover cure. I think the person who made that business is really clever because at college there will be parties, there will be mess, and there will be hangovers. That guy looked at the big picture and made a profit out of it and is now paying for his college tuition. The only downfall in having a business is not having time to do your school work and concentrating. Also not having enough sleep a risk, I like my sleep :)

[Chelsey Sniffen]

02:15 AM on 03/01/2011

Continued...
For example, if you are Filipino, money is always there for help just because of your ethnicity. Why? Well, because of where you or your family was from. It is like a stereotype. Giving you more of an advantage based on what you are. In the Phillipines, it isn’t a very wealthy place to be, like the states. You can be born in the U.S. and still be able to get use what you are to get ahead of every student applying for college, scholarship, etc. The money and help is there, you just have to know how to search and pursue it. It is time consuming and overwhelming at times but, if you really want it, you’ll do your best to get it.

[Shazlynn Simer]

02:53 AM on 03/01/2011

What ethinicity you are really is a big thing that helps you pay for college. For me, being Hawaiian helps me ALOT.. :P There is a lot of scholarships that i can apply for, just for being Hawaiian. I am sure there is scholarships for most types of ethnicities out there and it is a really big help. It's a good thing that you are able to get money for musical talents. It is hard to get jobs now but you just have to find the right place. A job is a job, so you should do whatever you can to help you get extra money and help. Great post! :D

[Shawnee Santos]

04:46 AM on 03/01/2011

I'm Native American, so I am sure there are many scholarships that I could possibly apply for :) Getting scholarships for just being Native American could help me further my education and help pay for my tuition. I think any talents, how smart you are, and what your ethnicity is can help you so much for college. For me, my talents is cooking. I could start a business when i'm in college to help pay for my tuition. There are so many possibilities you can do to pay for college, but only if you have a creative mind and the power to keep going. :)

[Chelsey Sniffen]

02:15 AM on 03/01/2011

“Strum It Away” to me, seems like a pretty good way to earn extra side cash to pay for college. It could also be a way of being discovered. I play piano and I wouldn’t mind doing this, setting up an electric piano on the side of Waikiki for example, and playing what I like to do and getting some cash for it. If you have a talent, might as well use it for something right? Even though you could be getting a small amount of money to help pay off loans or just that extra cash on the side, it’s better than lounging around and not doing anything at all. Looking for a job is hard which is why a lot of people are trying to get whatever amount of cash they can get. There is also scholarships and financial aid. You would have to apply and see what you can get. Parents also don’t know that there is a ton of cash there; they just have to know how to get it. Usually, it’s the ethnicity of your child. It plays a pretty huge role of how your child can get accepted into college.

[Darrien Shealy]

12:55 AM on 02/24/2011

LOL I read some of your posts and, No some ways to pay for college shouldnt be to sell drugs but to apply for financial aid, or grants and scholarships.Financial aid is intended to make up the difference between what your family can afford to pay and what your child’s college costs. The majority of full-time students currently enrolled in college receive some type of financial aid to help pay college costs. Which I would say most families would apply. If out of state you should get some type of assistance no matter what type of background, just about.Then we have grants and scholarships.Grants and scholarships which are also called gift aid, don't have to be repaid and you don't need to work to earn them. Grant aid comes from federal and state governments and from individual colleges. Your child can also locate and apply for scholarships which are usually awarded based on merit. And not to mention good old fashion work! There are some student work programs that would allow u to got to school and get a job with flexiable hours. It also helps you pay for books, supplies, and other personal expenses. Not to mention you can get all kinds of grants and scholarschips for college based on ethnicity and get assistance.TuitionPay is the interest-free, debt-free way to spread tuition payments over a number of months. The TuitionPay Plan is not a loan, so there are no interest payments.

[Shazlynn Simer]

03:00 AM on 03/01/2011

Drugs definately will not get you into college! Maybe jail, but not college. The best way is like the comment says, through scholarships and financial aid.

[Reid Jackson]

01:32 AM on 02/15/2011

Screaming mad about the student loan debt?

http://alleducationmatters.blogspot.com/

http://www.facebook.com/#!/group.php?gid=123449065669

[binxterdoodles]

02:21 PM on 02/14/2011

Under "steal" the author should have mentioned subsidized grants

[Pilatunes]

10:03 AM on 02/11/2011

An acquaintance of mine paid for law school by performing as an exotic dancer. She made a ton of cash.

[LadyMarine0426]

10:06 PM on 02/09/2011

Military pays for college-and you'll learn a skill to help you get a job, as well.....just sayin'. :) And if you do your research you can get a nice little two year contract instead of four year one.. I just got finished serving five years in the Marine Corps and am now happily attending college with no expense to myself. :D Oh, by the way, not every job in the military deploys overseas-just do the research. It's worth a moment of thought....

[larmand]

09:07 PM on 02/07/2011

There's a lot of University of Colorado in here... The $1 bill payment and Hangover Helpers. Maybe because we receive a dismal amount of funding from the state, about 3%...

[jaguar6cy]

11:42 AM on 01/24/2011

Students are receiving nothing of value and should demand full refunds. The outrageous pay and benefits for professors and administra­tors are funded by student debt. In fact today student debt exceeds total credit card debt. Bill Gates recently predicted that within 4 years a world class degree program with world class instructor­s will be available on the internet for $2,000. When that happens, Universiti­es, shown to be a sham, will close in large numbers. It can't happen soon enough.

[jaguar6cy]

11:38 AM on 01/24/2011

Students are receiving nothing of value and should demand full refunds. The only thing they get is to support the outrageous pay and benefits for professors and administrators. Bill Gates recently predicted that within 4 years a world class degree program with world class instructors will be available on the internet for $2,000. When that happens, Universities, shown to be a sham, will close in large numbers. It can't happen soon enough.

[HigherEdvice]

03:31 PM on 01/21/2011

This is a very interesting blog post. Thanks for providing the information. We think the idea of financial literacy for college students is very important and it's amazing to see the "crazy" things people do in order to attend college. Did you know that the American Association of State Colleges and Universities recently called for higher education institutions to be more proactive in promoting financial literacy on campus? Check out how the University of Minnesota champions this cause on www.higheredvice.com

[Rick Olivo]

11:59 AM on 01/21/2011

The most obvious solution that has paid for thousands of college students tuition is prostitution. Yeah, it's illegal, but it can pay well. So well that many students quickly realize that they don't need college to make the big bucks. Of course, hooking can also be dangerous, or fatal. And you don't necessarily meet the best class of people; but you could say the same thing about an athletic scholarship...

[archUF]

01:39 AM on 01/21/2011

for those who's gut reaction is to proclaim "get a job", please take into consideration how difficult that may be. As an architecture student, every waking moment of my college life is spent working on school work. it is not impossible to get a job (I work for the university as a GTA as well, and it does pay), the pay itself is only just enough to cover some tuition and most of rent - what about everything else? If I get a part time job and work during the time that I should be spending doing school work - what is the point in going to school to learn? To spend money on classes and then fail them because I'm working and not in studio? Student loan debt in modern higher education is inevitable.

[Lynnsey523]

03:16 PM on 01/20/2011

well the Hangover Helpers business is probably the best thing about this article. Genius.